SVHC Announces DAISY Award Winner

BENNINGTON, VT—March 7, 2022—Bentley Munsell, BSN, RN, CEN, of the Emergency Department, was the February recipient of the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses at Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC).

“Bentley’s combination of skill and experience, along with his gentle and compassionate manner, are so reassuring to patients,” said Pamela Duchene, PhD, APRN, SVHC’s chief nursing officer and vice president for Patient Care Services. “He is able to set people at ease and deliver the important information patients need in a way they easily understand, even when they are initially quite scared or upset. We are so grateful to have him on the team.”

Duchene gave the award during a surprise presentation in the Emergency Department at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC) on the morning of February 17, 2022.

Munsell received two nominations from patients.

The first nominators are a couple who arrived to the Emergency Department distraught at having discovered a new symptom of a serious condition. “Bentley was very reassuring and guided us through the process,” the nominator wrote. “The empathy this nurse showed to us [made] a huge impact on how the rest of the visit went.”

The second nomination was from a family whose 3-year-old son needed stitches. “Bentley was the first [person] we met… upon entering [the Emergency Department], and I am grateful for that,” the nominator wrote. “It was scary for us, but [Bentley] kept his cool and made us feel so comfortable.”

On having received the award during a surprise ceremony in the Emergency Department, Munsell was “shocked.” “I just come to work and try to give the best nursing care I can,” he said. “My colleagues who have been recognized are exceptional. To be recognized alongside them… I am honored.”  

Munsell holds bachelor’s degrees in biology and psychology from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and a bachelor’s in nursing from University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He is a student in the master’s degree program in nursing at Chicago-based Rush University. He has worked at SVMC since 2015, when he started as an Emergency Department technician. He became a nurse at SVMC in 2018, after having earned his nursing degree.

Munsell serves on the Night Shift Council and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and chairs the Nursing Advisory Council, a committee that works to advance nursing and nursing care across the health system. In addition, he is a certified emergency nurse with the Board of Certification in Emergency Nursing.

The DAISY Award is part of a national merit-based recognition program established by the DAISY Foundation. It celebrates nurses’ education, training, and skill. Nominations can be submitted by patients, families, physicians, and colleagues. All nominations are blinded, so that they are anonymous before being reviewed by a selection committee. One nurse is then chosen as the DAISY Award winner. DAISY Awards are presented on a regular basis, usually bi-monthly or quarterly.

About SVHC:
Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) is a comprehensive, preeminent, health care system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices.

Southwestern Vermont Health Care is among the most lauded small rural health systems in the nation. It is the recipient of the American Hospital Association’s 2020 Rural Hospital Leadership Award. SVMC ranked fourth nationwide for the value of care it provides by the Lown Institute Hospital Index and is a five-time recipient of the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet® recognition for nursing excellence. It has also received the highest marks possible from the Leapfrog Group. 

Southwestern Vermont Medical Center provides exceptional care without discriminating on the basis of an individual’s age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture, language, physical or mental disability, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression. Language assistance services, free of charge, are available at 1-800-367-9559.